On the way back to the hotel, Lex, sitting in the carriage, recalled Kyle's expression and words during the Provocation, sorting and summarizing them in his mind.
'The targets I can provoke can roughly be divided into two types: human and non-human. When provoking a human target, I need to understand them well enough to make them lose their minds with just a few words or actions.'
'It seems that the acting for the Provoker at this Sequence stage should lie in the word 'Provocation' itself. If I provoke people around me all the time, the potion's residue should be digested quickly.'
'But the consequences of doing that would probably be terrible for me, right?'
'At Sequence 9, the Hunter stage greatly improved physical fitness, enhanced combat-related abilities, and excelled at making traps.'
'At Sequence 8, the Hunter's abilities can be used to assist the Provoker. What about the Pyromaniac at Sequence 7? Pyromaniac sounds like a Fire Mage, which doesn't seem to have much to do with the first two Sequences.'
'Suddenly changing from a Provoker to a Fire Mage, truly worthy of a world of Confusion and mystery.'
'Hmm, I believe the Provoker should have a deeper core for acting, but like the Hunter, it requires a lot of preliminary acting to gradually deduce it from experience.'
Lex rubbed his cheek, feeling that acting in this stage would inevitably involve getting beaten up.
In the afternoon, he changed into formal attire, brought gifts, and, accompanied by his valet Matthew and bodyguard Gru, took a carriage to the Golden Banyan District.
Councilor Maynard's house was located there.
The Golden Banyan District could be said to be the wealthy area of Tingen City, where the environment was quiet and elegant, with tall, dense banyan trees planted along the wide, cement-paved roads.
All the houses here were detached, surrounded by gardens and lawns, and also had stables and fountains.
Upon arriving at the Councilor's house, Lex was led by a butler in a tailcoat and white gloves to the main entrance of the two-story building.
Passing through the porch and entering the living room, Lex saw a man in his forties with short, golden hair, thick eyebrows, and a smile on his lips.
Lex knew that was Councilor Maynard.
"Good afternoon, esteemed Mr. Maynard, I hope my visit does not disturb you."
As soon as he entered the living room, Lex spoke proactively, and from his personal valet Matthew's hand, he took the gift he had prepared earlier.
When Maynard accepted the red wine and cigars, his expression was polite but showed no change whatsoever, but when he saw Lex hand over a poetry collection, his expression clearly froze.
Lex then took the opportunity of their close proximity to say in a low voice and with a smile: "This is by the famous Poet Habakkuk. In this collection, 'The Lover,' many romantic love poems are recorded."
"I know Mr. Maynard is also a romantic, and perhaps he might like it. I hope this does not seem presumptuous."
Maynard's face broke into a genuine smile. He accepted the poetry collection but did not hand the book to his personal valet.
"Lex, you are truly an interesting child. Come, sit over here."
The Councilor warmly invited Lex to sit down, and seeing the poetry collection placed beside him, Lex's smile grew even brighter.
After some pleasantries, Lex did not forget Bison's instructions, conveying the Baron's regards to the Councilor and subtly expressing Bison's desire for political cooperation.
Maynard smiled upon hearing this, not directly responding to the matter, but instead said: "In the near future, it is foreseeable that the number of knights in our Kingdom will increase significantly."
Lex did not quite understand, but maintained a smile on his face, patiently listening to the Councilor continue.
"Have you heard of the 'Grain Act' controversy?"
Lex nodded slightly in response: "After the repeal of the 'Grain Act,' grain prices fell, and the grain merchants in our Town once complained to my father."
Maynard hummed, his smile unchanged: "The scope of this controversy, and the number of people involved, is probably beyond what you can imagine."
"After the repeal of this law, grain prices plummeted, and the rental standards for fields and pastures also experienced a cliff-like drop."
"Many old-school nobles owned a large amount of fields, pastures, and forests. Therefore, they also suffered a huge impact. In order to maintain a decent life, they had no choice but to sell their land, pastures, or their collections."
"This gave the wealthy merchants of our Kingdom a precious opportunity."
Maynard revealed a meaningful smile, glancing at Lex: "Ennoblement."
Lex's expression stiffened slightly: "Ennoblement?"
"Yes, a large amount of land was released from the pockets of the old-school nobles, allowing wealthy merchants to seize the opportunity to acquire it. And as long as they possess a land area commensurate with a noble title, plus making necessary contributions to the Kingdom and to political parties, such as donations, they can obtain an imperial conferment from His Majesty the King, and receive a hereditary noble title!"
"It is gratifying that, despite the immense turmoil brought about by the 'Grain Act,' our Kingdom still has quite a few wealthy merchants. Therefore, I conclude that in the near future, many new nobles will emerge in our Kingdom."
Maynard paused here before saying: "Therefore, if your father, Baron Bison, wants to do something, he must act quickly."
"Otherwise, once that wave of new nobles floods into the Kingdom's political arena, Baron's competitiveness will greatly increase."
So that's how it is.
Lex nodded, sincerely saying: "Mr. Maynard, thank you for your guidance. I will send a telegram about this to my father as soon as possible."
While saying this, Lex was actually thinking further ahead.
He would leave that family sooner or later. At that time, he would lose his identity as the Baron's son and would lose a lot of protection.
If he had a large amount of capital and could acquire enough land to match a noble title, he could, through donations, obtain an imperial conferment from the King and become a hereditary knight.
In this way, he would have an official identity, which could provide him with various protections.
Gradually, Lex's path for the future became clear.
Invest to get rich, buy land to get ennobled!
When these preparations were made, that would be the time for him to leave his current family!
At this moment, Maynard clutched his chest, seemingly feeling unwell, and began to cough.
Strangely, Lex suddenly felt his Spirituality being touched by something.
He blinked twice inconspicuously, activating his Spiritual Vision.
Looking at Maynard, he could only see the Councilor's aura and etheric body, and did not find any health threats to Maynard.
But he saw Maynard cough out a puff of smoke from his mouth, which shimmered and constantly changed. Amidst the swirling smoke, some Vague faces occasionally appeared.